MARINE AMBLYRHYNCHUJ3. 155 



aboriginal inhabitant of the Galapagos ; for it is 

 found on all, or nearly all the islands, even on 

 some of the smaller ones where there is no water. 

 Had it been an imported species, this would hard- 

 ly have been the case in a group which has been 

 so little frequented. Moreover, the old Bucaniers 

 found this tortoise in greater numbers even than at 

 present : Wood and Rogers, also, in 1708, say 

 that it is the opinion of the Spaniards that it is 

 found nowhere else in this quarter of the world. 

 It is now widely distributed, but it may be ques- 

 tioned whether it is in any other place an abori- 

 ginal. The bones of a tortoise at Mauritius, asso- 

 ciated with those of the extinct Dodo, have gen- 

 erally been considered as belonging to this tor- 

 toise. If this had been so, undoubtedly it must 

 have been there indigenous ; but M. Bibron in- 

 fo:cnis me that he believes that it was distinct, as 

 the species now living there certainly is. 



The Amblyrhynchus, a remarkable genus of liz- 

 ards, is confined to this archipelago : there are two 

 species, resembling each other in general form, one 

 being terresti'ial and the other aquatic. This latter 

 species (A. cristatus) was first characterized by Mr. 

 Bell, who well foresaw, from its short, broad head, 

 and strong claws of equal length, that its habits of 

 life would turn out very peculiar, and different fi-om 

 those of its nearest ally, the Iguana. It is extreme- 

 ly common on all the islands throughout the group, 

 and lives exclusively on the rocky sea-beaches, 

 being never found, at least I never saw one, even 

 ten yards in-shore. It is a hideous-looking crea- 

 ture, of a dirty black colour, stupid, and sluggish 

 in its movements. The usual length of a full-gi'own 

 one is about a yard, but there are some even four 

 feet long ; a large one weighed twenty pounds : on 

 the island of Albemarle they seem to grow to a 



